Chapter 4: Restless

Ethan’s POV

I barely made it out of Noah’s suite before my wolf clawed at the inside of my skin, demanding I turn around. Demanding I go back in there, lock the door, and finish what my eyes had already started.

The image burned behind my lids even now. Noah standing there, fresh from the shower, water droplets trailing down from his navel, and disappearing beneath the towel that did nothing to hide the soft, heavy outline of his cock. 

It had shifted slightly when he moved, and the sight had punched the air straight out of my lungs.

I forced myself down the hallway, clenching my jaw so hard my teeth hurt. 

I shoved through the double doors of my office and slammed them behind me, the sound echoing off the high ceilings. My hands shook as I braced them on the desk.

"Breathe. Just breathe." My subconscious said.

A sharp knock interrupted before I could pull myself together.

“Enter,” I growled.

Marcus, my Beta, stepped inside. Tall, steady, annoyingly calm as always. His nostrils flared once, he could scent the agitation rolling off me in waves, but he was smart enough not to comment.

“Alpha. The emissary from the Blackwood pack is here. Elder Mara and two of her enforcers. They’re insisting on speaking with you immediately. Something about border tensions and a rogue sighting near the northern ridge.”

I dragged a hand down my face. “Now?”

“They’ve been waiting twenty minutes already. Mara’s patience is… limited.”

Of course it was. I straightened, forced my expression into the cold mask every pack leader learned to wear. 

“Take me to them.”

With that, we turned swiftly and strode out of my chamber. As we arrived, I saw Elder Mara standing at the head of the long table, her silver hair pulled into a severe braid. Her two enforcers were beside her, big, silent, radiating barely-leashed violence.

“Alpha Ethan,” she began slowly. “Thank you for seeing us on short notice.”

I inclined my head and took my seat at the opposite end. “Elder Mara. What brings the Blackwoods to my territory unannounced?”

She didn’t waste time on pleasantries. “Rogues. Three confirmed kills on our western flank in the last week. Claw marks match no known pack signature, but the scent trail leads straight toward your northern border. We need your assurance this isn’t your problem bleeding into ours.”

I leaned back, letting my fingers drum once on the armrest. “If it were my wolves, you’d already have their heads on pikes. You know that.”

“Do I?” Her gaze narrowed. 

“Your pack has been… unstable since your mate’s death. Whispers say your wolf is fraying. Some even claim you’ve taken a new one. A Carter, no less. The brother.”

My jaw tightened. Of course the rumors had already spread. Nothing stayed secret long among Alphas.

“Noah is here to stabilize me,” I said flatly. “That’s all you need to know.”

Mara’s lips curved, not quite a smile. “Stabilize. Interesting choice of words. And yet here you sit, scent spiked with arousal and distraction. Hardly the picture of calm.”

One of her enforcers shifted, a low rumble in his chest. Marcus stiffened beside me, ready to move if this turned ugly.

I met Mara’s stare without blinking. “My personal state is not your concern. The rogues are. If their trail crosses my border, my wolves will hunt them down. You’ll have proof within forty-eight hours.”

She studied me for a long moment, then inclined her head. “We’ll hold you to that, Ethan. But know this—if your instability costs us lives, the council will not hesitate to intervene. A fractured Alpha is a danger to us all.”

"Noted.” I blurted, glaring hard at her.

They left shortly after, leaving me alone with Marcus, and a few guards in the doorway.

“You okay?” Marcus asked, as soon as their footsteps disappeared.

“No, I need air.” I stood up and turned to the exit immediately. 

My chambers were at the far end of the east wing, far enough from Noah’s suite that I wouldn’t be tempted. Except I was already tempted. Had been since the second I walked into his room and saw him half-naked and vulnerable.

I stripped off my shirt, tossed it aside, and paced to the window. The forest stretched dark and endless below. My wolf pressed against my ribs, restless, hungry. Not for blood, but for him.

I could still see the way Noah’s fingers had fumbled to cover himself. He's shy, embarrassed, and yet there’d been a flicker of something else in his eyes. Curiosity? Fear? A spark of answering heat?

My cock twitched at the memory. I cursed under my breath and braced both hands on the windowsill, keeping my head low. 

This wasn’t part of the deal. I’d promised him distance. Promised myself control. But every time I closed my eyes, I saw that towel slipping lower, saw the way his stomach had tensed, the way his breath had ceased.

I wanted to taste him. I wanted to take that towel off and watch his face flush darker as I wrapped my hand around him, felt him harden fully in my grip. 

I wanted to hear the small, broken sound he’d make when I stroked him slow at first, then faster, until he was trembling and begging and spilling over my fingers.

The fantasy hit so hard I nearly groaned aloud.

I wasn’t supposed to want him. Not like this. But it's hard to push the thought away.

Tommy had been my true mate. Noah was supposed to be a bandage, nothing more. A familiar face to soothe the madness. Not this.

I turned from the window, dragged a hand through my hair, and forced myself to sit on the edge of the bed. My body was too tight, and hot. I could scent my own arousal now, thick and unmistakable. If Noah walked past my door right now, he’d know exactly what I was thinking about.

I couldn’t let that happen.

Three years, I reminded myself. Three years of pretending. Then he walks away, whole and untouched, and I go back to being the powerful Alpha everyone expects.

But the lie tasted bitter. Because the truth was simpler, and far more dangerous. I didn’t want him untouched.

I wanted him under me. Around me. I wanted to bury my face in his throat and breathe him in until the hollow place inside me stopped screaming. I wanted to fuck him until neither of us could remember why we’d started this charade in the first place.

And that terrified me more than any rogue, any elder, any threat to my pack.